THE MEDITERRANEAN.

15

drink beer all day;" an assertion which he of the cap indignantly denies, basing his arguments on the fact of his having visited London, where he has formed a more correct opinion of the Señoritas Ingleses. This is enough to make the travelled Castilian our fast friend, and the scowling Catalan our mortal enemy, and as such we remain till the end of the voyage.

The day, like the morning, is remarkably fine: not a ripple disturbs the placid bosom of the intensely blue waters, and the hours glide rapidly by as we breakfast and dine on the deck, and enjoy the glories of the setting sun over a bottle of genuine cognac, and a modicum of the weed,' smuggled away in our pockets from England. As evening advances we wander into the bows, inhaling the deliciously cool breeze, and watching the lights of Cape Creus revolving in the distant horizon.

Passing the engine-room on our return to the quarter-deck, I am seized with a desire to inspect the machinery; and we accordingly descend into its clanking depths, to the intense disgust of the engineer, who in strong language expresses his unmitigated dissatisfaction at our intrusion. We have some difficulty in pacifying the irate machinist through the intervention of a Mr. Robert Candler, whom we find in close confab with the stoker, and

who subsequently gets very gratuitously communicative. Without the smallest provocation, he invites us to the cabin to join him in a bottle of vin ordinaire, under the influence of which our new friend becomes very confidential. He informs us, inter alia, that he "was horse-trainer to the Duc de Grammont; thinks Rarey's system d-d humbug; is a Scotchman by birth; has been a bruiser; has fought the something pet in rather less than forty-three minutes; is considered by his numerous circle of acquaintance 'a good lad;' has muscle; has been engaged in deadly encounters with Genoese assassins, two of whom he on one occasion fought with his single arm, and finally quieted by kicking on the brain; speaks four languages, understands five; has dined at the tables of dukes and marquises; has a big brother-in-law residing in Crutched Friars; knows the world; has a word of honour, supposes we have the same; is covered with scars received in defending the honour of his country; can throw a summerset ; and, finally, is on his way to Madrid to fulfil an engagement as tumbling clown at Price's circus."

Highly diverted by our friend's garrulity and humour, we bid him good-night, and turn in under the table of the saloon, a four-poster improvised for the occasion. Coming on deck early the next

morning, we find ourselves close to Barcelona, the town lying behind a long pier, beneath a background of steep mountains; in a few minutes we round the light-house, and cast anchor under the shadow of the ever-memorable fortress of Monjuich, which Peterborough so gallantly assaulted and carried with a mere handful of hardy English soldiers in 1705. On a lofty, barren, and apparently impregnable rock stands the citadel; and great indeed must have been the surprise of the inhabitants of Barcelona, when, on the 13th September, they descried the British flag proudly waving on its summit.

We confide our passports to the care of the captain, to be afterwards restored to us at our hotel, and jumping into a boat are rowed to the shore in company with our whilom associate, Bob Candler, whom we here lose sight of. Alas! poor Yorick! on my return to England I was much shocked at hearing of the poor fellow's untimely death, caused by an accident at Madrid. Peace to thy ashes, rare Bob Candler!

с

We set foot in Spain amid a host of ragged rascals, noisy porters, importunate beggars, and sorry mules. Our trunks are hustled into a miserable shed, for the inspection of the custom-house officials; here I find myself perfectly helpless, and confide entirely in

SPANISH COINAGE.

19

Julius, who, after a great deal of harsh, and to me unintelligible language, manages to pass our impedimenta, and we enter a shaky-looking conveyance, which takes us into the town.

How attempt to describe the beautiful streets of this remarkably picturesque city? Though narrow and confined, like the generality of Spanish streets, they are well paved and clean; the houses are lofty, and from every window and balcony stream long sunblinds of every imaginable colour, giving to the long lines of perspective a novel and striking appearance. I am enchanted with the glorious vistas appearing at every turn. We drive to the Fonda de las Cuatro naciones, situated in the Rambla, a noble thoroughfare, one thousand feet long, lined with beautiful trees and shrubs. Having secured a room, and also baths, an indispensable luxury in this southern clime, and, generally speaking, excellent in Spain, we make an equally indispensable call on Señor Roaka, where I exchange a circular note for hard cash.

The Spanish coinage consists of onzas, media onzas, isabelinos, doblones, dos duros and duros, or sixteen, eight, five, four, two, and one dollar gold pieces; silver dollars, half-dollars, quarter-dollars, or pesetas colunarias, pesetas, and reales de vellon. The latter coin amounts to about two-and-a-half pence English,